Cover device for end of handbag handle or the like



D. l. REITER Aug. 20, 1968 COVER DEVICE FOR END OF HANDBAG HANDLE OR THE LIKE Filed May 29, 1967 INVENTOR DANIEL I. REITER BY \sbqoc'ro and ATTORNEYS United States Patent 3,397,725 COVER DEVICE FOR END OF HANDBAG HANDLE OR THE LIKE Daniel I. Reiter, 868 6th Ave., New York, N.Y. 10009 Filed May 29, 1967, Ser. No. 641,898 9 Claims. (Cl. 15033) ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE This invention relates to devices for hiding the ends of handles which are attached exteriorly to handbags or the like and is more particularly concerned with the problem of breakage in flexible handles.

In a well known form of ladies handbag a flexible handle is attached to the exterior of the bag body. For aesthetic reasons it is common practice to provide covers for the raw ends of the handle, usually plates shaped to enclose the handle ends. The covers may be attached to the handbag body by prongs or rivets. The handle may be secured to the body 'by the same rivets or by teeth formed on the covers.

Such handbag handles may be comprised of layers of textile fabric or plastic, for example, and when the handbag is carried by the handle, it tends to swing back and forth and to cause the handle to flex about an edge of the cover plates. Since the plate is conventionally a metal finding, usually of brass sheet material, the edge is rather sharp, even if'burnished, and ultimately the flexing of the handle at the edge results in breakage of the handle. Although tens of thousands of handbags with this construction have been sold over a period of decades, there has never been a solution to this problem, notwithstanding the common occurrence of handle breakage and the necessity for replacement of the handle or the whole handbag.

The applicant has discovered a simple and highly effective solution to the foregoing problem, and it is the provision of this solution which constitutes the principal object of the present invention.

Accordingly, it is an object of the invention to provide improved devices for covering, and attaching, the ends of handles such as the flexible handles employed in handbags or the like.

A further object of the invention is to provide such devices which may be manufactured simply and economically.

Briefly stated, the devices of the present invention comprise cover plates which are shaped to receive and surround the end of a handle, which have means for securing the plates to the body of a handbag or the like, and which may also have means for securing the handle to the handbag body. The handle end is inserted into the cover through an opening at one end thereof, the opening having an edge extending transversely of the handle about which the handle may flex. This edge is rolled over to provide a lip with a smoothly rounded surface for engaging the handle, thereby to reduce the tendency of the handle to break by flexing at the edge.

The foregoing and other objects, advantages, and features of the invention will become more readily apparent upon consideration of the following detailed description of the invention taken in conjunction with "ice the accompanying drawing, which illustrates preferred and exemplary embodiments, and wherein:

FIGURE 1 is a perspective view of one form of the invention;

FIGURE 1A is a fragmentary enlarged sectional view illustrating a detail;

FIGURE 2 is a sectional view illustrating the attachment and covering of one end of a handle to the body of a handbag by the use of the device of FIGURE 1;

FIGURE 3 is a perspective view of a modification;

FIGURE 4 is a perspective view of still another form of the invention; and

FIGURE 5 is a perspective view of yet another form of the invention.

Referring to the drawing, FIGURE 1 illustrates one form of cover device 10 constructed in accordance with the invention. The device comprises a plate 12, preferably a stamping of brass or other suitable metal, having side walls 14, 16, 18, and 20 for enclosing the end of a handle. In the form shown the device is rectangular, wall 14 being the major side wall and walls 16, 1-8 and 20 being minor side walls perpendicular thereto. Prongs 22 (there 'being four prongs projecting from side walls 16 and 18 at the corners of side wall 14 in the form shown) are provided for holding the devices upon the body of a handbag, for example. The device also comprises a member 24 having one or more teeth 25 and extending from side wall 20. conventionally, the parts of such cover devices are integral, being stamped or formed as a single piece of sheet metal.

Side walls 14, 16 and 18 define three sides of an opening opposite to side Wall 20 for reception of the end of a handle 26 as shown in FIGURE 2. The handle extends into the space defined by the side walls and may abut the side wall 20 as shown. Member 24 is initially oriented at an angle to side wall 14, as shown in FIGURE 1, and is then bent toward side wall 14 so that the teeth 25 bite into the end of handle 26 and retain the handle within the cover 10. Prongs 22 pierce the body 28 of the handbag, which may be a suitable fabric or plastic for example, and are then bent back around a washer or backing plate 30 to secure the cover device to the body in the conventional manner. While a single member 24 connected to the lower side wall 20 is shown in FIGURES 1 and 2, one or more such members connected to side walls 16 or 18 may be employed in addition to or instead of member 24 to retain the handle within the cover. In any event, a cover device 10 is provided at each end of the handle to enclose the raw handle ends and shield them from view.

In the cover devices which have been employed heretofore, for decades, the upper edge of the side wall 14, which extends transversely of the handle where the handle emerges from the cover, has been constituted by the sharp extremity of a thin piece of sheet metal. When the handbag is suspended by the handle 26, the handle tends to flex along the edge and eventually is cut or cracked. This problem has plagued the industry for years, without practical solution. The applicant has discovered that this problem can be substantially alleviated by folding or rolling over an extension of side wall 14 at the edge 31, preferably inwardly, to form a lip 33. See FIGURE 1A. Edge 31 then becomes a smoothly curved surface at least twice the thickness of the side wall 14. Although the handle 26 may continue to flex along this edge, the radius of flexure is much greater, and the problem of handle breakage is thereby solved.

FIGURE 3 illustrates an alternative form of the invention employing a cover device 32, which is a plate 34 having a major side wall 36 and minor side walls 38 which extend perpendicularly from and continuously about the periphery of side wall 36. The bottom of the plate is curved. Prongs project from side walls 38 and are employed to secure the cover device 32 to the handbag body or the like in the same manner as described in connection with FIGURE 2. In the embodiment of FIGURE 3, however, the end of the handle is retained within the cover device by separate teeth 42 which project interiorly of the cover device from the upper edge 44. This edge is nevertheless provided with lip sections 48 interrupted by the teeth 42, the lip sections being folded back or rolled over internally in the same manner as the lip 33 of FIG- URE 2 to provide the same freedom from handle breakage.

FIGURE 4 illustrates an embodiment in which both the cover device 50 and the handle 26 are secured to the handbag body by a rivet 52 (the head of which is shown) which passes through a corresponding aperture in side wall 54 of the cover device, pierces the handle 26, and is peened over or bent back after piercing the handbag body. Side wall 54 and minor side Walls 56, 58, and surround the end of handle 26 as before. The upper edge of side wall 24 is again folded back or rolled over internally to form a lip 62 and thereby to prevent breakage of the handle in the manner described.

FIGURE 5 illustrates an embodiment in which the cover device 64 merely serves to shield the end of the handle, which may be separately attached to the handbag body, as by a rivet. After the handle has been secured to the body the cover device 64 is secured to the body about the end of the handle, prongs 66, which project from the continuously curved plate 68, piercing the handbag body and being lbent back as described previously. The edge of the opening at the top of the plate, from which the handle emerges, is again folded back or rolled over internally to provide a smoothly contoured lip 70, which may be formed in sections, as shown, to prevent buckling of the metal due to the curvature. Again, the lip provides the advantages described above.

The invention claimed is:

1. A cover device for the end of a flexible handbag handle or the like, comprising a plate having side walls for surrounding the end of the handle and having means for attaching the plate to a body of material to which the handle is to be attached, said device having an opening at one end thereof for receiving the end of the handle therein, said plate having an edge defining a side of said opening transverse to the handle and about which the handle may flex, said edge being rolled over to form a lip for providing a rounded surface to engage the adjacent side of said handle, thereby substantially reducing the tendency of said handle to break by flexing at said edge.

2. The device of claim 1, said attaching means comprising prongs extending from said plate to pierce said body and to fasten said device thereto.

3. The device of claim 1, said plate having tooth means extending from at least one edge thereof interiorly of said side walls and adapted to bite into said handle to retain the same upon said device.

4. The device of claim 3, said tooth means projecting from the first mentioned edge of said plate and interrupting said lip.

5. The device of claim 1, said plate having an aperture therethrough for receiving a rivet constituting said means for securing said plate to said body.

6. In combination with the body of a handbag or the like, a handle having an end thereof adapted to be secured to said body and a cover device including a plate with side walls surrounding said end of the handle for hiding the same from view and means for securing the device to said body, said device having an opening at one end thereof into which said end of the handle is inserted, said plate having an edge defining a side of said opening and extending transversely of the handle, said edge being rolled over interiorly of said device through said opening to form a lip with a smoothly curved surface, thereby substantially to reduce the tendency of said handle to break by flexing at said edge.

7. The combination of claim 6, said securing means comprising a rivet for fastening said handle and said cover device to said body.

8. The device of claim 6, said securing means comprising pron-gs projecting from said plate, said prongs piercing said body and being bent back upon said body.

9. The device of claim 6, said cover device having tooth rneans extending interiorly thereof from at least one edge of said plate and biting into said handle to retain said handle within said device.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,450,570 4/1923 Zuckerberg 33 X 2,093,687 9/1937 Kluger 150-33 2,112,707 3/1938 Reiter 24265 DONALD F. NORTON, Primary Examiner. 

